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    Back to Press Play with Madeleine Brand

    Press Play with Madeleine Brand

    The Politics of the Hijab

    President Obama was in Saudi Arabia yesterday paying respects to King Abdullah, who died last week. The visit was short, but there was just enough time for the First Lady to find herself at the center of a controversy. Michelle Obama chose not to wear a headscarf to official proceedings.

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    By Madeleine Brand • Jan 29, 2015 • 1 min read

    President Obama was in Saudi Arabia yesterday paying respects to King Abdullah, who died last week. The visit was short, but there was just enough time for the First Lady to find herself at the center of a controversy. Michelle Obama chose not to wear a headscarf to official proceedings. It’s not entirely unusual for foreign officials to skip the hijab in Saudi Arabia, but thousands of tweets from Saudis criticized the first lady for not covering her hair. Why does the headscarf keep getting dragged into political discussions?

    The full episode

    2 of 5
    Mormon Church on Gay Rights, Politics of the Hijab, and Songwriting Feuds
    1. 0:00The Mormon Church and Gay Rights
    2. 8:43The Politics of the HijabYou’re reading this
    3. 16:50Kids Walk Home Alone
    4. 25:22Choreographer Amy O’Neal’s “Opposing Forces”
    5. 40:13Tom Petty, Sam Smith and the History of Music Legal Battles
    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Madeleine Brand

      Host, 'Press Play'

    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Andrew Walsh

      Too Beautiful to Live

    • KCRW placeholder

      Christian Bordal

      Managing Producer, Greater LA

    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Matt Holzman

      Producer, 'The Document'

    • KCRW placeholder

      Haleh Esfandiari

      Woodrow Wilson Intrenational Center for Scholars

      News

    The full episode

    2 of 5
    Mormon Church on Gay Rights, Politics of the Hijab, and Songwriting Feuds
    1. 0:00The Mormon Church and Gay Rights
    2. 8:43The Politics of the HijabYou’re reading this
    3. 16:50Kids Walk Home Alone
    4. 25:22Choreographer Amy O’Neal’s “Opposing Forces”
    5. 40:13Tom Petty, Sam Smith and the History of Music Legal Battles
    Back to Press Play with Madeleine Brand